In his book 33 Strategies for War Robert Greene seeks to lay out the key tactics used in military maneuvers throughout history. His book is, you could say, a textbook on how to run a successful military campaign.

It is divided into 5 sections, the last section seeming to be one of the most stimulating. The last heading is that of “Unconventional (or Dirty) War.”

Luke 11:14-28

Of course, there is nothing clean about war of any kind. But in this section Greene lays out some of the more manipulative aspects of combat.

The first strategy mentioned in this section is that of misperception. The goal of this tactic is to weave a seamless blend of facts and fiction so as to deceive the enemy and throw them off course. One of the examples that is given of this approach was during WWII. In order to confuse Hitler—and so disarm his ability to make effective decisions when the Allies stormed Normandy on D-Day—the United States built up a fake army on England’s shores. There was no army in that vicinity, but Hitler’s forces were receiving intelligence that a large number of troops were being mustered in a given area. The result was that it looked from the German perspective as if an attack were going to be slated from a completely different region. The deception worked brilliantly. Hitler’s reaction time on D-Day was slowed immensely, and the Allied forces were able to gain the upper hand. Deception and “dirty war” have always been useful tactics in combat situations. We might even say that it is the oldest of strategies because it has been around since the beginning of time. Satan, you know, is the Father of Lies. And in the Garden of Eden, when the war between good and evil first began, Satan implemented deception. Since then, it has been his main approach. And as we come to our passage today, we see something of his dirty warfare being practiced. In our text today we see that Christ has just done a miracle. He has cast out a demon. And it is so clearly demonstrated that no one can deny it. The people who oppose him are even convinced that a miracle has occurred. But rather than acknowledge it, they attempt to pervert its interpretation. They seek to deceive the people so as to keep them from following Christ by attributing it to the power of Satan. And as Luke develops this story we learn a number of things about the war between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan. You might say that Christ cleans up the dirty war by giving us a clear perception of the nature of Satan’s kingdom. At the very outset of our passage we see how Satan’s kingdom is doomed.

I. Christ reveals how satan’s kingdom is doomed [14-22]Verse 14 tells us of the exorcism that Jesus performs. We are told about a man who had been in such bondage to a demon that he could not talk. This demon had paralyzed his tongue . But along comes Jesus and he casts out the demon. Immediately the man’s tongue is loosed and he begins to talk. What you need to remember is that all of Jesus’ miracles have a redemptive focus. They are almost sacramental in that they give a visible testimony to the kind of ministry that Jesus conducted. Every time Jesus casts out a demon we are told that he had come to liberate us from the dominion of Satan. This miracle pointed the people back to Genesis 3 and that first gospel pronouncement. This was a sign that that Christ was the promised Messiah who had come to crush the head of the serpent. Each exorcisim is a reminder that the kingdom of Satan was being besieged and would soon come to an end. But it is not just this act that testifies to Satan’s doom. We also see it in jesus’ argument. The very next verse we see that some of them who were there said that the reason he is able to cast out demons is because he himself is possessed. He casts them out by the power of Satan/ Beelzebul (Beelzebub). And Jesus refutes this charge by saying, “A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand.” In other words, this charge is absurd! If Satan casts out Satan, then he is fighting himself. He would be defeating his own territory and giving it over to God. That is ridiculous. It is like the Roman Catholic priest who was once denouncing the revivals that were occurring among the Protestants in Ireland. He warned his people against them by saying that these revivals were the work of the devil. A little boy then said to the priest, “Just think, father. It must be a new kind of devil, because that’s not the way the old devil used to make people behave themselves.” The old devil would make them more scandalous, not more holy & devote! But look at what Jesus says in verse 21. In verses 21 and 22 he compares Satan to a strong man. And he says that there is no possible way of beating a strong man unless you have someone stronger come along. Jesus says that if a stronger man comes along and disarms him, then he can then plunder his house. And Jesus, by virtue of this exorcism, is saying, “I am that strong man. I am here to plunder Satan’s house.” What this amounts to is a prophecy of what we have witnessed for the last 2000 years. For the last 2000 years we’ve witnessed the plundering of Satan’s house. Satan’s house is the entirety of the world. He has guarded it nice and safe up until the time of Christ. The nations were blinded by him and under his dominion. But ever since Christ came, and ever since the Spirit of God was poured out on Pentecost, Satan’s house has been plundered. The gospel is going out through the world and people all over the globe are turning to Christ. Think about how the gospel has advanced. In the early centuries it raced through the Roman Empire. In just 300 years it was turned upside down and went from persecuting Christianity to having it as its main religion. It became so prevalent that by the mediaeval ages they used to call the European continent “Christendom” (i.e. Christ’s kingdom). In the 17 century the gospel was carried across the sea to America, and from there it has gone around the world. Admittedly, the gospel has waned quite a bit on these two continents, but it continues to grow like wildfire in other places. It is said that it is only a matter of a decade or two before there are more Christians in China than communists. There are also testimonies of how the church is moving like a wild forest fire across Latin America and South America.One pastor put it this way,

“Two hundred years ago less than one per cent of evangelical Christians lived outside of the West. Today, 70% of believers are non-Western. It took 1,430 years for Christianity to reach one per cent of the world’s population. By 1940 that level had risen to three per cent. Since the Second World War evangelical Christianity has grown to 11.2 % of the world’s population." There can be no doubt that the house of Satan is being plundered. Jesus Christ is the stronger man and he has Satan pinned down. It is all just a reminder that Satan’s kingdom will not last. But not only do we see that Satan’s kingdom is doomed, the passage goes on to show us how Satan’s kingdom is manifested.

II. Christ reveals how Satan’s kingdom is manifested [23-26] In verse 23 Jesus says, “Whoever is not for me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.” Jesus says, “Hey guys, there are only two sides to this whole shebang. There is my side and the other side. You are either on one or the other. There is no in-between And the way you can tell is by examining you act.” What Jesus is doing here is really showing who is on the side of Satan. He is telling these guys exactly where satanic alliance really lies. Jesus is saying, “You accuse me of being of the devil? The truth is, you are the ones who are aligned against God. I am doing the works of God. But you have attempted to slander me and soil the clear manifestation of the finger of God.” Another way to put it would be to say that the Satanic spirit is that which is anti-Christ. Christ represents all that is good. Opposition to him is allegiance with the forces of hell. The way Satan’s kingdom is manifested is in those who refuse to acknowledge the Lordship of Christ. Their lack of faith and their inability to acknowledge His saving power are the tell tale traits of where their loyalties lie. In verse 24 gives an illustration of what he’s talking about. He draws on the exorcism that he just performed and talks about an evil spirit that come out of a man. After it is cast out it goes all over seeking a place to settle down, but it can’t find it. So what it decides to do is go back to its original dwelling place. He grabs seven other spirits that are even worse and he takes up residence once again in his former dwelling place. What Jesus is doing here is giving a little illustration of what the Jewish people he was talking to were like. He’s not saying that they were all possessed by a demon, don’t think that. He’s talking about how they demonstrate a form of religious piety, but lacking the reality of it. These Jews were moral. They gave the impression of being cleansed. They made great attempts at reforming their life and their culture. They gave the impression of being incredibly religious, but in reality they weren’t. There was no true working of the Spirit within them. What they lacked was that inward renewal that is the heart of the Jewish religion. That’s why Jesus says these demons were able to come back and take up residence again. Jesus’ point is that unless you have the inward transformation of the Holy Spirit, you are in league with Satan. You must not confuse moral reformation with personal regeneration. It does not matter if you’ve cleaned up your life or mellowed out with age. If your heart has not changed, then the chains that bind you to the devil’s rule have not been loosed. One of the greatest mistakes a man can make is what we see in this passage. A man can deceive himself into thinking that he is a great man of God when, in all actuality, he is not. You might have undergone a great transformation. You might have, as they say, “Got religion” and left your old ways of drunkenness and debauchery. But if you have not had a true changing in the inward man, there is nothing with which to be happy. You are still a friend of the foe and an adversary of God. The truth is: You cannot be part of Christ’s kingdom unless you are born again. Again, these Jews with whom Jesus was speaking were likely perceived as some of the religious establishment. They were scholars when it came to Scripture. They were exemplary when it came to moral discipline. But despite all this, they were the embodiment of Satan’s forces. And anyone who has not had that heart transformation is going to be like. No matter how moral or pure you may appear, you will manifest the spirit of Satan by opposing to the person and work of Jesus.

III. Christ reveals how Satan’s kingdom is escaped [27-28]The way it is escaped is found in verse 28. In verse 27 a woman, so impressed with what Christ has said, stands up and says, “Blessed is the one who gave birth to you and nursed you.” But Jesus says in response, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” Now don’t think that there is anything wrong with what this woman says. Jesus is not rebuking her or correcting her. The adoration she offers is fine and good. Jesus simply takes the opportunity to tell us what it takes to be aligned with his side. He has just said, “Whoever is not for me is against me.” And he has pointed out that the kingdom of Satan is doomed. So there might be some people sitting there thinking, “Well, how do I know if I’m on the right side?” or they may be thinking, “How can I get to the right side?” There may be people living in their sin and they may want to defect. So Jesus says, “If you want to be blessed—if you want to be relieved of the curse that is upon the house of Satan, then what you must do is receive my word. You have to believe me and obey the law that I am lay down.” This is something of what the Heidelberg Catechism gets at. In the Heidelberg Catechism there is a question that asks, “What is true faith?” The first part of the answer says this, “True faith is… a sure knowledge, whereby I hold for truth all that God has revealed to us in His word.” It goes on to be more specific about the gospel. It says that true faith is also, “a firm confidence … that the forgiveness of sins, everlasting righteousness and salvation are freely given to me by God.” But we should not overlook the general statement. What is true faith? It is a sure knowledge whereby I hold for truth all that God has revealed to us in His word. Perhaps we can understand it better this way. What Jesus is saying here can be illustrated by noting the difference between someone who is a terrorist and someone who comes to our country peacefully, wanting to be a citizen of it. Someone who comes as a terrorist will perhaps come through the same portal as an immigrant. He will likely be received and processed at the same place. He will be instructed in the laws of our lands and will likely take the same test. But what is the difference between them? The one who comes seeking citizenship is one who believes in America and what it stands for. As a result, he is one who hears those laws and seeks to obey them. There is a true heart affection for this nation and a desire to be a part of it. He leaves his former country and cleaves to this one, and it is demonstrated by his obedience. That isn’t so for the terrorist. The terrorist comes to our land, but doesn’t wish to be a part of it. He loves his homeland more. Though he hears the same instruction and learns many of the laws that govern our land, he isn’t swayed by it. He may give some outward compliance here and there, but it is not true obedience. Defiance is in his heart. He is only here because he wishes to destroy it. Ultimately, the terrorist defies the laws of this land by striking out against it. Now, do you see what Jesus is saying. He is laying out for us the way to come into the kingdom of God. If you are a citizen of Satan’s kingdom (and we all are by nature), Jesus says, “This is the way you can come into the land of blessing. This is the way you transfer your citizen ship. You must not only hear what I say, but you must receive it. You must demonstrate it by seeking to obey me and living by the laws that govern my kingdom.” Anyone who doesn’t take heed to the word of God is nothing but a Satanic terrorist—just like these people we’ve been talking about in this story. But anyone who listens to Jesus and accepts his word, he is a child of God. Conclusion: The beginning of John Bunyan’s classic work Pilgrim’s Progress presents us with a man who lives “In the City of Destruction.” He is presented to us as a man who has received a correspondence. The letter tells him that the city that he lives in will be soon destroyed and all who are in it will be lost. The man is so vexed by this that he becomes fanatical. His family even declares him to be mad. He carries on in a fit for some time. Until he finds that the only answer is to run from his land. He covers his ears and dashes away from the city saying, “Life! Life! Eternal Life!” The scene from that book sums up well what we find here in this passage. Satan’s kingdom is doomed. All who are against Christ will one day find themselves facing the wrath of God, and there is only one way to escape it. You must run to Christ for life. If you are to find the blessedness of life, you must forsake the ways of the devil and submit yourself to Christ.